General Visitor Visa or Parent/Grandparent Visitor Visa
New Zealand is a tourism country and welcomes numerous visitors from around the world every year.
To accommodate everyone’s purpose, there are several visa options available depending on the purpose. If you were solely looking to travel to NZ for a holiday, then a general visitor visa would be sufficient. However, if you were wanting to come to NZ for a holiday but also to visit family then you would have the option of the General Visitor Visa or the Parent/Grandparent Visitor Visa.
With the two different options, which suits you more?
The difference between the General Visitor Visa and the Parent/Grandparent Visitor Visa is that with a General Visitor, Immigration would grant a five-year multiple entry visa with the ability to remain in NZ for 3 months at a time. With the Parent/Grandparent Visitor Visa, Immigration New Zealand would grant a three-year multiple entry visa with the ability to remain in NZ for 6 months at a time.
For both of the above visas, the 9 months within a 18 month maximum stay rule would apply, That is, notwithstanding that you are permitted to remain in NZ for the time stated on your visa, for each 18 month’s period you are only permitted to be in NZ for no longer than a 9 months period. Once you have maxed out the 9 months period you will be required to leave NZ and remain outside of New Zealand for a period of time before re-entering.
For the above-mentioned visas, it is not just the duration of the visas are different, but the documents required to demonstrate that you are a bona fide applicant also differs.
If you are considering in coming to NZ for a holiday but also want to visit your families, it is important you apply for the correct visa as this will speed the process and assist with Immigration New Zealand’s assessment.
If you require assistance with applying for the right visa to travel to New Zealand please contact us or one of our Team